Week 12

Itunes University is a wonderful application. It has books, series, and lectures from different professors that students from different universities have complete access to. All of the information given through itunes is completely free. It doesn’t matter what type of computer one uses, the information is capable for use on a MAC or PC.
Everything is very organized. There are over 75,000 educational audio and video files. The files are taken from museums and public media organizations. This application can be used as a learn as you go process. The application can be synced to the students ipods or iphones.
I think this is going to be a great application for all types of schools, not just colleges or universities. I want to use this in my classroom when I become a history teacher. I saw so much information the could help the students understand the material better and actually apply it the lecture

Week 11

As the world becomes more dependant on technology there is something new always discovered to be used as an educational device. Almost every teenager owns an ipod. Ipod has became an household name in the past couple of years. They have discovered while using podcast a teacher can put powerpoint presentations and lesson plans for the students to download and view. The ipod can also be helpful to students learning a second language, while listening to their ipod they can follow along in their books. Students can also review for tests while looking through powerpoint slides.
So many things can be created and used with the ipod, such as multimedia lessons, simulations, and key notes. Duke University has used ipods to help their college students learn since 2004. They started giving all of the new students ipods in 2006 free of charge. It has greatly helped there learning ability and has givien opportunities to continue studying outside of the classroom.

Week 10

This site Dr.Christie has established is a great asset for any teacher. She shares her 40 years of experience with everyone. On her site there is ideas for workshops that teachers can attend. If a teacher does not know how to use some source of technology, there is listings to show a teacher how to use it. There is also different pictures and other resources that are available for teachers to use.
I am so glad that I have learned about this site. There is so many resources that I will use when I become a teacher. I know sooner or later I will not be completely up to date with technology, but this site will show me all of the new things and give me ideas to improve my classroom. I cannot wait to put Mrs. Christie’s advice to work.

Week 9

The articles on Wikipedia are not completely accurate. They have records of articles being changed and thing being deleted. Most people when they use a search engine, and Wikipedia comes up, it is normally one of the first sites they look for the information. I’m also guilty of just going to Wikipedia and search for just the first thing I can find.

The government and different organizations have edited different entries to save their reputation and make their company look good. Different information should be available to the general public. If the public wants to know they should be able to find out the information. If the company or person did something wrong it does not change history if they just take it off of Wikipedia.

Week 8

The fishbowl blog for November 2007 talked about having the entire school enabled for wireless internet. The connection would be open for use Monday through Friday and some Saturdays. This school is every involved in the community, and wants the community to be able to search the web to help their everyday use.

The main reason they want to have wireless is so that the people in the community can have the ability to start learning how to use the computer and the internet since our society is leaning toward complete use of technology in schools. If the parents do not know how to use it then they would not be able to help their children or have interaction with the teacher. I think this is great that a community is wanting to move forward and help the community

Week 6

Shu Ren International School is an international school based in Berkeley. They have their own web page along with blogs. Shu Ren is open all year around. They also have a great student/ teacher ratio. There are about eight students to one teacher. The school has a grand reopening this month. In their blog they talk about their curriculum and progress they are having with their building. The school calendar, information about new teachers, and the after school programs is listed on their blog at http://shurenschool.wordpress.com/.



http://shurenschool.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/openinginvitation2.jpg





The Harrow International School is based in Bangkok. They have an amazing website that has all the information anyone would like to know. They have pictures that show boarding school life and activities. Each Teacher has a blog to show what is going on in his or her classroom. One could visit their website to view everything they have to offer at http://www.harrowschool.ac.th/?q=blog/10. This school looks very interesting. If I were a student I loved love to attend this school.




http://www.harrowschool.ac.th/?q=image/tid/66

Week 7

This blog is very truthful. I really don’t understand why some teachers and parents think it’s fine to be technology illiterate. Our new generation of technology is growing everyday. If teachers can’t accomplish the standards the school system has established for the teachers, then the teacher needs to make an effort to change that or find another profession. I know that seems kind of harsh, but our students should be given an equal education as every other student.

If I teacher is older and received his or her degree years ago, they should not be stubborn to conform to society. I know they might have taught many years without technology, but for this day and age our society functions on computers and technology. If I were in that teacher’s shoes I would see it as a challenge and be more than happy learn something new.

Sometimes the parents are not encouraging for a student because they do not know how or they just never learned how in school. This is our chance to make sure all of our students learn how to do everything. In different ways we are steering the future for out students.

Web Accessiblilty and Adaptive Technologies

Steve Sullivan talked about different software and technology to help people with disabilities use the computer and internet. I am so glad there are thing out there so others can enjoy the use of computers the way I do. Some software is cheaply priced, therefore everyone can afford it. Everyday there are others trying to advance technology so everyone can use the computer.

Week 5

The world today is prospering faster than ever before. More children are being born across the world every second. As the population grows that gives more opportunities for education and scientific development. Twenty years ago the internet was not a necessity, but today our societies function on quick access and instant gratification.

 Education is now become the normal, and it is expected, unlike years ago when education was a privilege. Our generation has great expectations that they don’t want to work for. Our generation has become lazy and reliant on search engines to find out information. The computer has become a household name. If one goes into a neighborhood almost every house has at least one computer.

Different college degrees have been created to service and create more modern technologies everyday for the computer. Today computers give students and teachers a way to connect, yet also away to learn and keep up with daily news. There are so many things that a computer enables one to do. I think that is one reason we use them so often everyday. 

Week 4

Shu Ren International School is an international school based in Berkeley. They have their own web page along with blogs. Shu Ren is open all year around. They also have a great student/ teacher ratio. There are about eight students to one teacher.  The school has a grand reopening this month. In their blog they talk about their curriculum and progress they are having with their building.  The school calendar, information about new teachers, and the after school programs is listed on their blog at http://shurenschool.wordpress.com/.

 

http://shurenschool.files.wordpress.com/2008/09/openinginvitation2.jpg

 

 

The Harrow International School is based in Bangkok. They have an amazing website that has all the information anyone would like to know. They have pictures that show boarding school life and activities. Each Teacher has a blog to show what is going on in his or her classroom. One could visit their website to view everything they have to offer at http://www.harrowschool.ac.th/?q=blog/10. This school looks very interesting. If I were a student I loved love to attend this school.

http://www.harrowschool.ac.th/?q=image/tid/66

Week 4

Week 3

Different Schools are starting to use blogs to keep students, parents, and teachers connected with each other. Blogs are set up on the Internet by either county or state. I found example of each of those circumstances. The two different example I found were Goochland County Public Schools and Washington State Public Schools.

 In Washington State Public Schools they use their blogs to share a large amount of information. Everything that is going on in the schools is put on the blogs. For example they have the school calendar, school policies, and even a blog on when the teachers went on strike. All of the different topics and the number of blogs pertaining to that topic is on the right side of the web page at http://wateachers.blogspot.com/ . The way this web page is set up gives everyone easy access.

In Goochland County Public Schools the blogs are used differently. On the home page, http://blogs.glnd.k12.va.us/teachers/ , they give the definitions of the different terms used for blogs and explain how to use them. On the left hand side each teacher created their own blog. On their blogs it gives weekly assignments, policies of the classroom , and topics they will be discussing in class. This is a wonderful blog setup. It even gives contact information if a parent needs to get in contact with the teacher.

 When I was in elementary or middle school we did not have access for this type of communication. My junior year of high school our school was starting Edline. That system did help, but it was not always current. I think blogs are great way to keep everyone posted on all the calendar events, assignment, or even a quick question. I look forward to using a blog for my classroom. 

Week 2

Alabama Learning Exchange, commonly know as ALEX, is Alabama’s course of study. This website is a teacher’s best friend. It gives you everything one would need to know about the material one is required to teach each school year. Besides giving requirements, it also gives links for resources, sample lesson plans, and examples for everyday teaching. This website can be accessed at anytime. I think myself along with every future teacher will use this database every day.

 I think I would use this database for everyday use and for following the requirements of the state of Alabama. I know there are several topics for each course that a teacher is required to teach, and when using this database it will help one to not skip over any topic. I can be very forgetful, but this database will be there to keep me on track for each course topic.

 When using this database it will also give one ideas for resources that have information about the topic one will teach about. I know when I was a younger student I loved to hear fun facts about a topic, for the most part those fun facts are what kept me interested in the different topics. This database also gives lesson plans for each topic a teacher might have for each subject. For example if I had to teach 10^th grade social studies I could just follow the links and the database would give several topics with several different lesson plans I could follow by or use. 

First Post

Hey, My name is Kristen Stringfellow. I have lived in Mobile all of my life. I graduated from Faith Academy in 2007. I'm majoring in Secondary Education and History at the University of South Alabama. When I was little I wanted to be a nurse, but after my first semester of college I decided that nursing wasn't for me. I always loved history and I want to share my passion with other students. So maybe one day they can love and appreciate it as much as I do.

I'm also a member of Alpha Omicron Pi. I absolutely love my sororiety and all of my sisters. I pledged AOII in the Fall of 2007. I was elected onto our Leadership Council shortly after I was initiated. Being a new girl in a sororiety is a great experience,but I'm so glad to be a "old girl." We had a very successful rush this year, and I am proud to say we have 27 new ladies. Being a big sister to a Kelsey is going to be a blast !

Outside of college I'm a typical 19 year old. I love to go to the beach, go shopping, and go out with my friends. I spend most of my free time, which I don't have a lot of, at the beach ! I love any type of water sport and going out on the boat. I recently started playing golf, disc golf, and tennis. They have became my new favorite sports. I'm not very athletic, but I love to play sports for fun ! I have a Jack Russell Terrier. His name is Ranger. I also love to take him to the park and running with me.

I have taken a lot of extra classes because I would like to finish college early, so i can go to grad school. As of right now I will be a junior in the spring, and I should finish a year early. I haven't decided where I want to go to grad school, but I'm looking into Ole Miss and Alabama. I am glad to be in this class, and I can't wait to get to know everyone !